Silver hair and a broken Smile
by Ekho
Summary: James Potter encounters an upset Narcissa Black, and learns that she is not the ice queen he thought she was.
1. Chapter 1

Silver hair and a broken smile

"Bloody Padfoot," James muttered as it started raining. Making his way across the sodden grass James glanced wistfully at the clouded sky. He couldn't help but wish it was the full moon again- before remembering the bottle of firewhiskey he had retrieved from the shrieking shack.

Making his way past the lake James stopped as he noticed a figure in the distance. Squinting through the downpour he tried to make out who it was. It was definitely a girl he decided, but what was she doing out here in the middle of the night? Edging closer he finally saw who it was- Narcissa Black, and she looked upset.

Cursing his own gallantry James pulled off his invisibility cloak and walked towards the lone slytherin.

"Narcissa, are you alright?" He shouted before realising what a stupid question it was.

No answer

"Narcissa?" He asked uncertainly

This time she seemed to hear and turned towards James, moonlight reflecting off her pale skin. He almost gasped, this wasn't the confident girl he was used to seeing at the slytherin table. Her skin seemed ghost like, he eyes bloodshot and her normally golden hair was soaking and plastered to her face.

"Leave me alone Potter." She finally choked. However by this point James could tell something was wrong, and was too much a Gryffindor to let her freeze to death.

"You need to come inside," he pleaded, "You'll get ill if you stay out here any longer." If she wasn't already he couldn't help but wonder, why else would someone sit out here in this weather.

"I don't care" was the whispered reply, "everything has already gone to hell."

Ignoring the dampness James sat down next to her . Glancing over he couldn't help but marvel at how beautiful she was. She is so fragile, he couldn't help but think.

"I'm sure its not as bad as you think," was the only response he could think of, knowing how lame it sounded even as he said it.

She glanced at him, poison in her eyes, "My sister has just left home with some muggle born idiot," She said, "My parents went crazy, now shes been disowned and I've been forbidden from contacting her."

"Do you always do as you're parents tell you?" he replied mockingly, "I thought slytherins were supposed to like breaking rules."

That was supposed to earn him a smile, but instead Narcissa dissolved into a flood of tears.

"I owled her twice since she left but heard nothing. She's my sister, MY SISTER, and yet she left without even saying goodbye."

James couldn't help but shift on the grass. Dealing with hysterical females was something Lupin was better at. He just seemed to make things worse. As if on cue Narcissa started sobbing harder.

"Maybe shes afraid you'll try to convince her to return home? Or will disapprove of her boyfriend."

"Shes knows thats not true!"

"Really?" came James' surprised response. Sirius had always portrayed his family as muggle-hating psychos, and Narcissa never seemed to be exempt from that description.

Glaring at him Narcissa responded, "I am not my father, or my aunt, Potter. Andromeda could be with a muggle- as long as she was happy- I wouldn't care."

"Maybe you should talk to someone about it," James suggested, "Your sister, or a friend?" She certainly seemed to have enough James noted.

"My friends wouldn't get it, Bella might...if she wasn't so wrapped up in this death eater stuff." She spat that last line out, as if disgusted at the idea of Voldemort. Which maybe she was, James mused, she certainly seemed far less evil than Sirius described.

"Maybe you could talk to Sirius..." His voice trailed off as Narcissa gave him a scornful stare.

"Are we talking about the same Sirius here? My cousin? The boy who acts as if I'm evil incarnate whenever I try to talk to him, just because I dared to be sorted into slytherin, like the rest of _our _family."

James nodded, even he couldn't argue against that. Shifting slightly closer he realised the ice princess was frozen, literally, she was shaking. Taking his other cloak off, James wrapped it around Narcissa, accidentally touching her hand in the process. It was ice cold.

"Please let me take you inside, Narcissa, please," He begged.

Narcissa turned her ice blue eyes round, meeting his brown ones, "Why wasn't I enough for them ? Why couldn't I stop Andy from leaving, or Bella from turning into a monster?"

Without turning away James put his arm around the slytherin girl, " Its not that you couldn't save them, its just...sometimes people need to make their own decisions, and learn from their own mistakes."

That sounded suitably Dumbledorish that James couldn't help but be pleased with himself.

"Now, if we are staying outside in the pouring rain," James decided, lifting his bottle of firewhiskey, "Perhaps we should do it in style."

"No you're right, we should go inside." Narcissa said, shaking herself. As they both stood up, she leaned over and kissed James on the cheek, "Thank you...and maybe a rain check on that firewhiskey." She smiled as she said it, and then walked off towards the castle.

"Women," James muttered, marvelling at the retreating figure.

That night was the first he dreamt of silver blonde hair, and a broken smile.


	2. An Almost Kiss

Thank you for the reviews. At the moment I'm trying to show various episodes that built the relationship between James and Narcissa. I know where I want this story to end up...I'm just not 100% sure about how to get there. Basically what I'm saying is if I start writing dribble that seems pointless, do let me know, and I will try to fix it, thanks.

An almost kiss

James was staring at the Slytherin table. Again.

"Prongs!" Sirius' exclaimed, as his voice penetrated his friend's daydreams.

James stared blankly at his fellow marauders, trying to remember what they had been planning.

"He's got that face on again," Remus joked, "the one that says he has been thinking about Lily."

_Not quite_

However, his friends had already turned their attention to the fire haired Gryffindor further down the table.

Smiling menacingly, Sirius levitated a chocolate eclair, "Well maybe we should get her attention then."

Prongs couldn't help but laugh at the glint in his friend's eyes, but before either of them could blink an annoyed Professor McGonnagall was at their side, glaring sternly at all of them.

"Black I do hope you intend on eating that."

"Eh...yes, of course professor...just wanted to have a good look at it first," Sirius replied, dropping the eclair onto his plate.

Frowning at them suspiciously one more time, Minerva retreated to the teachers table. But continued to glance their way.

"I don't understand why she is suddenly so suspicious of us," Sirius muttered, whilst poking at the desert.

"Well, the foodfight last week probably didn't help," James noted smiling.

"And she blamed us for that as well""

"Probably because we started it," Remus interjected, turning to face Prongs accusingly.

"Snivellus was just standing there, and the pie was in my hand- what else was I supposed to do?" James justified, as the four of them started laughing at the memory of an apple pie hurling towards Snape's astonished face.

A flash of golden hair stopped James, as he turned to watch an escalating argument an irate Angela Rosier, and a weary looking Narcissa Black. She looks upset, James noted. As if hearing his thoughts, the blonde witch looked over and met his eyes before storming out the great hall, oak doors slamming behind her. Not one of the slytherins at her table tried to follow.

James returned his focus to his friends, who were now attempting to transfigure a Hufflepuff's chair into a sheep.

"I need to do something," he declared, ignoring their surprised looks and sprinting out the hall towards Narcissa.

Even as he was doing it, James couldn't help but question why he had just left his friends for a girl he barely knew...who he was supposed to hate. It was that night by the lake he decided. Since then all thoughts about Lily Evans had disappeared, only to be replaced by fantasies to Narcissa Black.

"Narcissa!" He called, sprinting towards the retreating figure.

She turned around surprise in her eyes.

"Can I help you Potter?"

He stopped then, surveying the girl in front of him, wondering if he had made a mistake.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay...after that night at the lake, then the fight you had today..." And why is she staring at me like I sprouted a second head, he thought.

"You were worried about me?" There was a confusion in her voice that James didn't understand. It was as if she wasn't used to people caring about her.

Clearing his voice James replied, "Well yeah...you know Gryffindor chivalry and all that." He shifted uncomfortable as he said it, hoping he didn't sound as stupid to her as he did to himself.

"Sometimes I think it would be better to be in gryffindor,"

James almost tripped over his feet then, "Really? but you always seemed to have so many friends in slytherin."

"Oh I do...or I did. Turns out when word gets around that your sister is a blood traitor, people start to worry that its catching," her voice had turned venomous, "my so called friends have stopped speaking to me, its as if everyone has been waiting for the fall of a slytherin princess."

All because of her sister? James knew some of those pure blood fanatics were...well fanatical, but this seemed ridiculous.

"Maybe you should ask for a house transfer?" James jokingly suggested.

"No, what they want is for me to do something to prove I'm not like her...by hexing some Hufflepuffs, or dating a pureblood. What they definitely don't want to see me doing is mourning after my sister." Like she has been doing, James noted.

They walked along the empty corridors in silence.

"Well if you have to choose, I'd suggest hexing the Hufflepuffs, just make sure McGonnagall isn't around. For some reason she disapproves of things like that,"

That earned him a laugh, and James couldn't help but marvel at how much it lighted up her face, "I can't imagine why that would be Mr Potter."

"No idea...and where are we going anyway?" He asked after realizing that Narcissa seemed to be guiding him towards the astronomy towers, for some unforeseen reason.

"The astronomy tower." Unsurprisingly.

"Any particular reason?"

"Its where I go to think, and get some peace...you don't have to come if you don't want to."

"No, no I want to," again Prongs found himself wondering why he had said that.

Reaching the top of the tower, James could not help but note how clear the night sky was.

"I should be name after one of those you know," said Narcissa gesturing towards the stars. "Instead my grandmother died the week before I was born, and mother insisted on naming me after her."

"And you're complaining?" James asked, "What else was left...Cassiopeia...Narcissa sounds far better if you asked me."

"You're right, I need to stop moaning about my life, I'm beginning to sound like my mother."

"I don't mind listening, although I will say you are much more beautiful when you smile,"

Suddenly Narcissa stop staring at the stars above and focused in on him. She was surveying James in a very...odd manner. Almost as if he had said something interesting.

"Here was me thinking you only had eyes for Lily Evans," Narcissa commented. Did everyone know about that, he thought. He really was going to have to be more subtle in the future.

"Lily is great, she's just not..." Not what, he wondered, not interested? not pretty enough? not smart enough? It was none of those factors. The reason was, in short, simply that she was not Narcissa. But staring into the Slytherin's pale eyes, James decided against telling her that. "She is just a friend," he finished lamely.

Narcissa fixed him with an even stare, clearly not buying a word. "Well whatever the relationship between you two, I just wanted to say thank you, for listening to me. Even if it is just because of a Gryffindorian sense of obligation." She smiled as she said it, but there was a weight to those last words.

"I'm not here because I feel obligated to, Narcissa, I really do care about you." He took her hands as he said it, "Why don't you believe that."

"Maybe...maybe I'm just not used to anyone caring, not really. People say they do, then they run off with boyfriends, or change into a different person, or even worse nothing changes and I realise that they never cared in the first place."

"Then those people are idiots."

James was slowly moving closer to Narcissa, a heat building between the two. Leaning in James suddenly caught sight of a large tabby cat staring at them. Before either student moved the cat vanished.

" Thats Filch's cat," Narcissa exclaimed, a worry entering her voice.

"I know," James replied. Grabbing her hand he ran down the tower, Narcissa in tow. Glancing around he darted towards a large painting of an unknown witch. As he tapped the picture with his wand, it swung open revealing a large passageway.

"My advice-get in," James called, jumping through the hole. Without hesitating Narcissa followed suit, closing the painting after her. The two sat in silence for a minute before bursting into laughter.

"That was-"

"fun?" James proposed.

"Exhilarating," came the reply, "and thank you for the speedy escape."

"Well, I would rather not end up in detention for another month."

"Yes I forgot you are an old hand at escaping from Filch aren't you?"

"Well, just a bit." He was staring at her again, trying to decide whether to finish what they had almost started.

As if reading his mind Narcissa decided for them, "So which way back to the Slytherin common rooms? I really can't disappear for too long."

"You should stop worrying about what they will think you know."

"Its not them...I don't want my parents to think I'm turning into Andromeda, for all their faults, they are my family and losing them would hurt even more than losing my sister."

That is definitely one messed up family James thought, but he decided against saying it alloud. Unlike Sirius, Narcissa seemed rather attached to her relatives, even if she did dissaprove of their actions.

"Well then, the Slytherin chambers are up this passageway."

As they got to the common rooms, Narcissa smiled as James "Thank you," she whispered, he eyes betraying her thoughts. However, before anything more could happen she turned away, returning to pretend friends and real enemies.

When he finally headed back to the Gryffindor common rooms, James could not help but reflect on Narcissa Black and that almost kiss.


	3. Words seem so superfluous now

As always, reviews are welcome. Thanks for reading.

Words seem so superfluous now. 

James Potter was sitting in his history of magic class, rather unsurprisingly _not _thinking about history of magic. Sirius had convinced Wormtail into hexing him to get out of classes, and what could only be described as an unpleasant detention with Argus Filch. With his usual partner in crime indisposed and Moony and Wormtail scribbling down everything Professor Binns said, James had resigned himself to death by boredom.

Instead he found himself thinking of Narcissa Black and the events of the previous week. Events which had been odd even by Hogwarts standards. Four Slytherin seventh years had been exposed after forming a 'death eater' club, been subsequently expelled and if rumour was true, sent to azkaban. The school had been abuzz with stories of their supposed actions, as well as being shocked that such evil could penetrate the walls of Hogwarts. Although in reflection the four students involved had been decisively unpleasant and had relished the controversy they had caused.

The result was an over-whelming anti-Slytherin attitude throughout Hogwarts. Slytherin itself seemed divided into factions of would-be-death eaters, and those who wanted nothing to do with Voldemort or his cause. With Narcissa in the latter group.

With Binns' dismissal of class there was a rush to escape. James held back and pulled out the marauders map. Tapping it with his wand he began searching for the footprints of Narcissa Black, and found them in an empty charms classroom.

Walking in he spotted the icy blonde practising jinxes on various cushions.

"I know Flitwick has some bad taste in decorations, but I really don't think you need to destroy them."

"Oh very funny Potter," she retorted, eyes sparkling "I'm practising some defensive spells if you must know. Only it doesn't seem to be going too well."

"Maybe it would help with some live targets, I'm sure I could bribe some first years."

"Yes I heard you and Sirius did that when practising sleeping potions."

James smiled wickedly at the memory, "Yes, and yet somehow Professor Slughorn still wasn't impressed."

"Imagine that," she noted dryly.

Dropping into a nearby chair James picked up what could only be described as a depressed looking cushion. "So, eh...what spells were you practising exactly?"

"Defensive ones. I can disarm people but thats about the extent of my knowledge."

James couldn't help but wonder how anyone could share a house with Bellatrix Black and not know various jinxes. However, considering it was a rather touchy subject he decided against saying so. "Why learn them now?"

She fixed him with a heavy stare. "Are you joking? With the atmosphere around the school right now. Being in Slytherin itself is dangerous enough, and without death eater loyalties you might as well just have a sign saying 'hex me.'"

It was as if she was echoing his earlier thoughts, "Well maybe I can help you practise."

Relief flashed through Narcissa's face, "Thank you, I've been practising stunning spells and..." With a wave of her wand Narcissa muttered "Petrificus Totalus." James felt his whole body freeze and he fell to the floor. Two seconds later the spell was reversed. Getting up James paused to glare at Narcissa but she started laughing.

"I'm sorry, I haven't had a chance to test it on anyone yet. I really didn't think it would work."

Rubbing his head James replied, "well it did, maybe I can help you with some others."

After an hour and a half of being stunned, confunded and levitated, James had to admit that Narcissa seemed to be more than able to defend herself. He picked himself off the floor, "Remind me never to get on your bad side 'Cissa."

"Did you just call me Cissa?"

Yes, he thought to himself, but that was probably because his tongue still wasn't working properly. "Sorry, I meant to say Narcissa."

"No, no...its alright. Its just that was always Andy's nickname for me."

"Have you still not spoken to her then?"

Narcissa's face seemed to shut down. As it always did when she thought about her family, James noted. It was as if a switch was turned and all her emotions were closed down.

"No, she still hasn't replied to any of my owls."

"Maybe she will when this war is over. Everything is a mess at the moment." That last part had slightly more heat than James meant it to. But then he couldn't help but want this war over, for people to stop killing one another over something as simple as blood.

As if reading his thoughts Narcissa reached out and touched his hand, "You are right. Maybe when this war is over everything will be fixed."

It was a lie and both of them knew it. Yet no one wanted to admit that even if Voldemort was defeated the main problems lay within society as a whole. However, James realised with a jolt, for the first time in a long time he wasn't worried about the future. He did not care about the ugliness of the war, it was outside. All he was interested in at that moment was the Slytherin girl standing beside him. She was radiant.

And so staring into her eyes, James kissed Narcissa, and to his surprise she responded. At first the kiss was gentle, then it became more urgent, both of them lost to the passion of the moment. It was as if they had melted into each other, with electricity dancing on their skin.

James had kissed other girls before, but never had it made him feel so _alive_.

Eventually they broke apart, neither really knowing what to say. Words seemed so superfluous now.

"That was-"

"Fun?" James asked.

"Amazing was the word I was going for."

"So no regrets?"

"Never."


	4. Conversations

First of all I just want to thank everyone thats been reading and reviewing this story. I am really sorry I stopped updating but life seems to have got in the way of writing. Anyway I will try and update this story at somewhat regular intervals in the future.

* * *

Conversations.

"I have to tell them," James said, feeling Narcissa stiffen in his arms, even as the words came out, "it's been over a month, they know something's going on."

A month, a month of stolen kisses and hidden meetings, of lying to his friends and running off with Narcissa. James couldn't continue and he knew Narcissa wouldn't be pleased at his decision.

She sat up, turning towards him, meeting his eyes, "then you're going to leave me too." She sounded hollow, as if she was already resigned to him leaving her.

"No, not at all, I will always be here for you," he hated the idea of leaving her, hated thinking that his friends might demand just that. He wanted to spend his life making her smile. "You know, we could always just run away together. I am very rich," he said smiling. He leaned in to kiss her and felt the rest of the world disappear as she kissed him back.

I could spend the rest of my life kissing this girl, James thought as they broke apart and Narcissa rested her head on his shoulder. "And I promise, that nothing my friends say will stop me wanting to kiss you."

"Well I thought that much," Narcissa responded, flushing and somehow looking even more beautiful.

"If you tell Sirius then I think I should tell Regulus what's happening." It was such an unexpected comment that James didn't know how to respond. "He's my cousin...and he should find out from me."

Can't really argue with that James mused, "How will he react? Will he tell your parents?"

"Not if I ask him not to, and he'll probably react about as well as Sirius." She replied dryly.

"He won't react that badly," James responded. But a heavy feeling was setting over him and he felt himself question the words the moment he said them. He looked back to Narcissa who was watching him, her eyes drilling into his skull, almost as if she could read his mind.

"Yes he will, and we both know it." She suddenly straightened, pulling her hair out of her face and turning away "but I know my cousin, and I know he'll forgive you, you are his family after all."

"So are you and Sirius will realise that once he sees what a good person you are."

"Maybe," Narcissa shrugged, "But in the end I think Sirius is more similar to Bella than he will ever realise. They might be on different sides, but both are so single minded in their beliefs."

James shifted uncomfortably, "I think he will prove you wrong."

And with that she smiled, a smile of longing rather than happiness, hoping for a moment she never expected to come.

* * *

At the end of the night, James trudged back to the Gryffindor common room, feeling somewhat elated but also anxious at the task that lay before him. "Albiflorus,"" he muttered to the fat lady, climbing in to what he had expected to be an empty common room. Instead his three friends sat around a piece of parchment. Walking closer James felt his heart sink as he recognised the Marauder's Map.

"Narcissa?" Sirius snarled, "You've been ditching us for Narcissa?"

"Yeah," Remus continued dryly, "Sirius had his money on an affair with Professor McGonagall."

All of James' carefully rehearsed explanations died under his friends' glares.

"Guys...I'm sorry, but Narcissa, she...well it was both of us really, we thought it would be best not to tell anyone about us, at least not until we knew what was really going on," feeling like a stuttering idiot even as he said it.

Remus had carefully positioned himself between an irate looking Sirius and James. "Well what is going on Prongs? You and Narcissa is it...?" Lupin trailed off, as if trying to find an innocent way of explaining his friends exploits. Meanwhile Peter's eyes kept dancing between his friends frantically, as if wondering who would draw their wand first.

"It's serious, Narcissa, she's like no one I've ever known. I really care about her." Prongs was not about to admit to his friends, who were looking at him with such confusion that he was starting to fall in love with the slytherin princess.

"You _care_ about her? She's a slytherin! She's evil! How could you choose her over us?" Sirius exploded. Not seeming to care about anything else.

"Just because she is a slytherin doesn't make her evil, she is a good person, she doesn't care about that pureblood crap any more than we do," James justified. "Things, they're not easy for her since Andromeda left and she has not got anyone to talk to about it."

"So what? Who cares if she is miserable? She made Andromeda's life a misery, just like the rest of them. If she's alone now, it's her own fault."

James couldn't help but hesitate; Narcissa had mentioned her dislike for Ted Tonks but had never really mentioned how it impacted her relationship with Andromeda.

"Oh right so one bad decision, one mistake and someone is evil? Irredeemable? You've made mistakes padfoot, we all have, it doesn't make us evil, just normal."

"Her entire life has been one mistake after another. You say she doesn't believe in blood purity? Yet she never says so. Never argues with her parents. She just sits there smiling, while I stand up for my beliefs and never once does she agree or stand up for me."

"Has she ever stood against you?" It was a quiet question, one James would rather not ask but he had to get Sirius to understand. "She considers you family; maybe if you just talked to her you would stop hating her so much."

"I doubt that," was Sirius' only reply as he pushed himself out his seat and stalked out the common room, portraits crashing behind him.

* * *

Narcissa was sleeping, or at least trying to sleep when someone rushed into her dorm.

"Narcissa Black?" A voice called out.

She rose from bed, squinting against the light, "Yes? What it is?" She croaked, she never had been a morning person, even when it was technically still night.

"Your cousin is outside; apparently he needs to speak to you urgently. Something to do with a family emergency. If you want to talk to him though you will need to go outside, he can't come into the Slytherin common rooms."

Emerging from her common room, Narcissa couldn't help but feel more than a little annoyance at her cousin. "Well?" She demanded.

But her annoyance was overshadowed by the anger on Sirius' face. "Really? James? Are you doing this deliberately?"

"Oh, yes Sirius, because everything is about you. Did it ever occur to you that I may actually like James? That he is the one person that's actually been there for me recently? No of course not. Ever since Andromeda left, I've been a pariah I-"

"Well now you know how it feels."

"Oh shut up. You make yourself a pariah and you enjoy it."

"I _enjoy _my family hating me? Are you insane? I don't do anything except tell them what I think of their beliefs and suddenly I'm as good as a blood traitor."

"Stop saying that! Stop trying to justify your hatred of your family by saying that we hated you first. We all love you…even your parents, you just make it so difficult." There were tears running down her face and Narcissa was starting to feel like she couldn't breathe. And there was Sirius looking at her as if he was seeing her for the first time. She turned away from him, wiping the tears from her eyes and hoping that the lighting in the dungeons was bad enough that he hadn't noticed. When she finally turned round Sirius was sitting rather deflated on the cold floor, his head between his hands.

"James…he mentioned you've been feeling alone since Andromeda left?" Narcissa nodded as she sat down beside him, trying to ignore the faint chill that was spreading through her body. "That's how I feel every day that I'm in that house. Alone and like everyone is against me."

"Well then I'm sorry that I don't stand with you. But our family is ripping itself apart, what with Bella wanting to run off and join Voldemort's cause and Andromeda leaving. I love my parents Sirius, I don't want to make things any more difficult for them." They both sat there in silence, neither one really knowing what to say.

"I guess things aren't easy for anyone anymore. You and James, if you make each other happy you should be together."

Suddenly Narcissa let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. "Thank you" she whispered, hugging her cousin for the first time since they were both children.


	5. The Date

Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing. Hope you all enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

Staring out of the dirt encrusted windows of the hogs head bar, James had to question how great this idea had been. A date had seemed to be the perfect idea at the time, it would bring a touch of normalcy to his relationship with Narcissa and with other people around, James would have to control how he was with Narcissa. Their private meetings were becoming increasingly more heated and passion fuelled; their last one had resulted in James going swimming in the great lake to cool off.

However, perhaps the hogs head wasn't the best choice, the bar itself was grimy; the patrons scary; the bar tender looked oddly familiar although James couldn't place his face and the whole place had a subtle stench of goat.

As the door opened and yet another hooded figure walked through, James could feel his heart sink again. Narcissa had taken some convincing before agreeing to a date, and after waiting for thirty minutes James was starting to suspect that she had only agreed to get him to shut up. However, as the hood fell from the hogs head's newest customer, James recognised the flash of golden hair.

He could feel himself smiling as he stood up to welcome Narcissa Black to his table. He laughed as her nose wrinkled at the surroundings: "This was your choice Cissa, we could have gone somewhere more cosy."

"We could have, but I'd rather not spend our date being stared at by idiots. I can stand a little dirt," she said before leaning in to kiss him gently. As he pulled her closer Narcissa placed a firm hand on James' chest, "I thought the idea of this date was so we wouldn't be tempted to go too far Potter," she said smiling.

"It was a stupid idea; if we hurry we can get to the shrieking shack before anyone notices."

"And what would you do to me once we got there?" Narcissa asked as she slipped into the booth, shrugging off her jacket to reveal a figure hugging pale green dress under it.

James could feel himself gawping at the dress, or rather the body that it clung to sensuously. The dress had caused a moment of distraction, "once we got where?"

Narcissa laughed delightedly at James' reaction: "See something you like, James?" she teased. James was surprised, not just by how Narcissa looked, but by her manner. She seemed to be enjoying herself more than before.

"Maybe. You seem different Cissa, has something happened?"

"Actually yes, Andromeda finally owled me back. I suspect Sirius asked her to, but never the less, it is good to hear that she is okay and the she doesn't hate me."

"See, telling my friends about us was a good idea."

"Maybe it was, although your friend Peter continues to stare at me as though I'm a poisonous snake."

"So nothing has changed then?" James joked. He knew his friends were still getting used to the idea of him dating a slytherin but he was hoping they would eventually get over it. The only exception seemed to be Sirius, who seemed to have accepted the relationship with a surprising ease ever since he had talked about it with Narcissa. A part of James wondered if Narcissa had hexed her cousin, or at least hit him over the head with something large enough to cause a concussion.

"I suppose not," Naricissa smirked, "Although I always thought Gryffindors were supposed to be brave. Peter seems permanently afraid of something."

"That's wormtail for you. Never really knew what that hat was thinking when he put him into Gryffindor."

"That's funny I used to say the same thing about Sirius."

"So did Professor McGonagall,"

As the conversation evolved from this teasing back and forth to each of them describing any noteworthy events of the past week James found himself watching Narcissa's every movement. The way she crinkled her nose when she telling some distasteful part of a story, or would laugh before telling a joke. In fact James was watching her so closely that he didn't notice Sirius' entry into the hogs head until his friend crashed down onto the chair beside him.

"So what are you two love birds talking about?" Sirius quizzed as James groaned inwardly.

"I was just telling James that Slughorn has been kicking more people out of the slugclub. I think he wants to distance himself from the Voldemort supporters."

"And yet he's still not invited Prongs and I back into the club."

"What did you expect after that whole fiasco with the enchanted snake?"

"Oh come on it was funny, right Prongs?"

"Hilarious, what are you doing here? We're on a date." He retorted. He was glad Sirius and Narcissa had been getting on well, but it was still _weird._ Sirius had hated Narcissa up until two weeks ago and now they seemed to be the best of friends. In classes where they sat together due to the teacher's penchant for alphabetical seating, an amicable chatter had evolved from what had once been a stony silence between the two.

"I know, I wanted to make sure you were treating my little cousin well."

James could feel his eyebrows rise at the ridiculousness of what his friend had just said, but "She's six months older than you," was the only response his brain seemed to manage.

Luckily Narcissa's wits seemed sharper: "As opposed to what? The way you have treated me in the past?"

Sirius let out a dramatic sigh: "Fine, if you must know I was bored, Moonys studying for some test and Wormtails got detention."

"So you thought you would crash our date?" James felt himself smile despite his annoyance. Sirius would never change; he always needed to be annoying someone, somewhere.

"Maybe I just like the hogs head. Barman, my usual!" Within minutes a bottle of firewhiskey was on the table.

Both James and Narcissa just looked at Sirius for a moment. "How often do you actually come here?" James asked.

"Where did you think all that firewhiskey was coming from Prongs?" Came his friend's roguish reply as he fished a strange card from his pocket.

Narcissa grabbed the card from his hand: "Alphard Black, Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. But…this clearly isn't you, there's a picture on it for crying out loud."

James stretched over to have a look at the card and stifled a laugh.

"Abe can't sell firewhiskey to Hogwarts students, he said all he needed was proof I wasn't a student."

"Does uncle Alphard know you have this?"

"Course he does, he was the one that told me that Abe could hook me up. Apparently they're old friends."

"So, this Abe, knows Uncle Alphard and yet you're using Uncle Alphard's identification to get sold?" Narcissa asked, looking between the two boys and together they all burst out laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. The sound echoed in the almost empty bar.

"Pure genius!" James managed to choke between laughs as the remaining patrons of the bar turned to stare at the trio.

Suddenly the bartender was back at the table, grabbing the bottle of firewhiskey from them, he turned to Sirius: "Maybe you should all calm down," he told them as the group descended once more into laughter. It felt good, James thought, to just laugh at something so…idiotic.

After more talking, and a great many more butterbeers the three of them traipsed back to school, laughing over another joke. At a nod from his friend, Sirius disappeared along the path and James pulled Narcissa into an alcove.

"I'm sorry about Sirius interrupting out date. I promise next time I'll tie him up in the common room."

Narcissa smiled at the promise, "As if that would work James, and besides today was…perfect."

"Really? Even with your idiot cousin being there?"

"Yes, even with my idiot cousin. It was nice to be with…friends. To talk and laugh with them. I can't remember the last time I laughed so much, everything is so serious now." And then she kissed him. James could taste the butterbeer on her lips and could feel her heart beating. At the sound of snickering in the background James broke away from Narcissa, but she didn't look worried about being caught. She was smiling, "you were right, a date was a perfect idea."


	6. Pick Your Battles

For those of you reading this I just want to say I'm sorry that I am so bad at updating this story, and thanks for bearing with me.

Pick your Battles

Narcissa was staring at James from across the great hall. He was talking to some girl, a pretty thing with big eyes and curly hair who was hanging on his every word. She couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy, not just because James was with another girl, but because they could be seen sitting together without anyone batting an eyelid at the propriety of it. She was a Gryffindor, whereas Narcissa was a slytherin.

Suddenly a presence crashed down in the seat next to her.

"What's up cuz?" Sirius asked nonchalantly, reaching over for a Danish pastry in the middle of the table.

"Sirius you can't sit here, this is the _slytherin table,"_ she hissed at him, trying to ignore the surprised expressions of her nearby housemates.

"So, I'm a Black, I'm like an honorary Slytherin," he said whilst chewing the stolen food and, Narcissa thought, resembling some sort of Neanderthal in his newly awoken, dishevelled state. "Besides, I'm here to talk to my cousin about some urgent family business."

Even as he said it, Narcissa was glancing around the table again; besides a few cursory glances people had already lost attention in them.

"So what is this urgent…Sirius stop stealing our food," she said, thumping his arm as he reached over for another Danish. "Urgent family business that is so important?"

"You know Cissy, you care far too much about what people think of you."

"You know I hate being called that…and what would you know? You came down to breakfast looking like the missing link."

"It's nothing a hairbrush won't fix and all I'm saying is that if you cared less you could be over there talking to Prongs, instead of going green with envy spying on him from across the hall."

"I'm not…should I be jealous?"

"Of McKinnon? Nah, she's nowhere near as pretty as you. I'm sure James would much rather be talking to his girlfriend," and grabbing another Danish he stood up and darted towards the Gryffindor table. "Oh by the way, did Dromeda owl you?" he called.

"About what…Sirius come back here!" She retorted. Fine, she thought, shoving her half empty plate to the side and getting up to follow her errant cousin to the other side of the hall. However, as she reached the Gryffindor table she was faced with a wave of suspicious looks _I can do this_, she thought to herself as she forced herself closer to the table.

"Wrong table slytherin," a voice called out from a group of boys.

_Screw this_, she thought and turned to stalk out of the great hall instead. Shaking slightly she lent on a wall. _Why should I care what some nobody says…how dare they judge me…it's probably some mudblood with no…no this isn't me._ Those were her parent's thoughts infecting her mind, not hers. It was just some thoughtless comment that meant nothing. But before she could muster the courage to return to the great hall a hand pulled her into a side alcove and she found herself staring at James' grinning face, with a smile that made her stomach flip.

"What's up Slytherin?" he asked as he reached in to kiss her lightly.

"Nothing, just my idiot cousin being his usual charming self."

"What's he been saying to you now?" James asked, still smiling.

"Oh you know the usual. That I'm useless and need to stop worrying about what other people think. He thought I should have gone over to the Gryffindor table to talk to you."

"Well I wouldn't have minded…but you don't need to feel pressured into anything. Sirius just thinks everyone should be like him."

"Well I must admit I was tempted after seeing you flirting with that girl."

"Then I should do it more often." James said as he pulled Narcissa in towards him, kissing her again, this time more passionately and Narcissa responded in kind, melting into the warmth of his body. It wasn't until a door banged closed down the corridor that they sprung apart, both laughing gently.

"We need to find somewhere more private at some point," Narcissa whispered gently. She didn't really think of the implications of what she had said until she felt James' body straighten.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" he asked, looking at her seriously, for once there was no teasing.

_Yes, _she realised with a jolt, she hadn't meant it that way, but she wanted to be with James, wanted him to be her first…so that no matter what the future brought they would always be connected, if even in some small way.

"James I love you…and yes I am saying exactly what you think."

James smiled, "Cissa, I love you as well.". Narcissa felt her heart skip, she realised how scared she was that he wouldn't say it back to her.

A rumble of noise let them know that breakfast was finished.

"I really can't face divination" she groaned, leaning her head against James' chest.

"Well then lets skip it, I've only got care of magical creatures…we can sneak down to Hogsmeade and have a second date?

"Hmmm a class of the professor predicting our deaths, or being stuck with you for an hour?"

"Meet me by the statue of the one-eyed witch near the defence classrooms in ten minutes then," James retorted, grinning from ear to ear, before disappearing as a wave of students exited the great hall.

Of course standing around next to a statue was not at all suspicious, Narcissa realised after waiting there for ten minutes. Any minute now a teacher would appear and wonder what the hell she was doing. Suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed round, to see James' grinning face…floating in mid-air.

"WHAT THE…" suddenly a hand clapped over her mouth.

"It's an invisibility cloak Cissa."

_Of course it was an invisibility cloak. Of course she had known that. It was obvious._ "Don't do that again," she hissed slapping him on the only visible appendage she could see- his arm.

But James just smiled, "Did I scare you?"

"No…just, some warning would have been nice. Now why am I standing at this statue like an idiot?"

"Oh right" and with that James tapped his wand against the statue, revealing a large passageway behind it that they could walk through.

Narcissa had to roll her eyes at the ever-expanding amount of secret passageways James and her cousin seemed to know about and escape through at any moment's notice. "How is it that you seem to know where every hidden tunnel is in this school?" She asked as they climbed through the dark and narrow tunnel.

"Well in first year padfoot and I used to go exploring a lot. The rest we found by following Filch around in my invisibility cloak."

"That was risky" she said, stifling a laugh at the image of those two huddled together following the miserable caretaker.

"Not really, we had released a pack of enchanted mice into the school to distract that cat of his; they were both too busy trying to catch the little buggers to notice anything."

"I remember those mice, they kept changing colours and singing Christmas carols…where did you find them anyway?"

"Hagrid…he's a great man, he wasn't too happy with us though after we let them loose."

"I'm not surprised those things caused chaos for almost a week."

"It wasn't that. He was just annoyed that we had given the cat something to eat."

After traipsing some more down the narrow tunnel they finally burst into a brightly lit storeroom, leaving Narcissa blinking at the sudden sensory overload.

"Where are we?"

"Honeydukes, it's probably closed but we should be able to get out through this side door…which is already open. That's strange."

"So Potter, where are you taking me on our second date?" Narcissa asked as she laced her fingers into his.

"Well I need some supplies from Zonkos and then we could go for a walk?"

"Very romantic, after that I'd like to check out the shrieking shack…apparently people have been seeing some strange things there at night?"

"…Like what?" He hesitated.

"I don't know, someone claimed to have seen a grim. Another one said he saw a giant stag. It sounds ridiculous but I thought it'd be interesting to have a look and see what all the fuss is about."

"Sounds interesting. Let's head over there then," he said, changing direction rapidly, "Besides, I think I just saw McGonagall down there. Don't look back."

The shrieking shack itself looked slightly less remarkable that Narcissa had thought. In the light of day it looked like almost mundane.

"I thought it would have looked…I don't know…more mysterious. It doesn't even look that old." Narcissa finally admitted, perhaps visiting it wasn't the best idea, "James?" she asked looking around.

He was looking down a path leading away from the shack at a group of figures in dark robes. Squinting down the path she started to recognise some faces, Snape and Rosier both of whom were Slytherin students at Hogwarts, MacNair who had recently left and her sister's most recent flame, Rudolphus Lestrange. Narcissa felt a chill down her spine, _deatheaters_. What they were doing in Hogsmeade at this time was beyond her, but she knew without even the slightest hesitation that it wasn't good.

James had his wand out and was creeping towards the group, "What is that slimy git up to?" He asked.

"I don't know and I don't care, we need to get out of here now!"

"No, we need to stop them, they're up to something. Someone will end up getting hurt."

"Yes us! There's four of them and one of you. James they'll kill us if we get in their way." She had to use her full weight to push him in the opposite direction, "please!"

It was not until she said that, that James finally turned his attention from the group down the path to the girl at his side, she could see in his eyes that he wanted to go after them, stop whatever plan that was being set in motion at this very moment. It was then that Narcissa realised why she would always be a Slytherin, it wasn't just because of her bloodline or the beliefs her parents tried to instil in her but rather it was that she would never rush into a fight. She understood that you have to pick your battles.

"You're right, I'm being stupid. Let's just go back to school." He said, shaking himself. And with one more regretful look back the pair left the scene quietly.

The walk back was a quiet one, both students lost in their own thoughts. It wasn't until they were back at the school that Narcissa decided she had to say something. "I'm sorry for what happened back there but-"

"No, you don't have to be. You were right, I was being stupid. Seeing them there like that, I just got a really bad feeling about it.

"I know, but I know them…know what they are capable of, not one of them would be an easy fight let alone four."

"Against the two of us?" James asked in an odd tone.

"Well I didn't see anyone else standing by our sides."

"No, it's just when you tried to stop me you said it would be four of them against one of me?"

Narcissa could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Would she have fought them? She certainly wouldn't have let them hurt James, but the idea of taking a stand against boys she had known since childhood (with the exception of Snape- who she had never really liked) still made her panic.

"I…I just wanted to get you out of there, had it come down to it I would have fought with you." She said, knowing that it was true but hoping it would never come down to it.

James looked at her as if he was not entirely convinced, but smiled, kissed her lightly and whispered: "I'll see you in charms Slytherin," before pushing the tapestry open and stepping out into the corridor.


End file.
